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The Stat Line Of The Night — 2/10/11 — Carmelo Anthony

Despite all the trade rumors and other distractions Carmelo Anthony has had to endure off the court, the Denver Nuggets forward continues to bring it on the court. Heading into last night’s game against the red-hot Dallas Mavericks, Melo was averaging 32 points per game in his previous six games. He would improve upon that average in a big way, thanks to a monstrous performance in front of the hometown crowd at the Pepsi Center in Denver.

Anthony was on target all night, hitting 17 of his 25 field-goal attempts and going 5 of 7 from beyond the arc for a game-high 42 points. He would also add 7 rebounds, 3 assists and a steal in 42 minutes of action before fouling out late in the game. The Nuggets would find themselves down by one with only seconds remaining, and with Melo on the bench, it was Arron Afflalo stepping up to hit the game winner at the buzzer to give Denver the 121-120 victory.

The Lakers, Knicks and Nets are just three of the many teams that are believed to be courting Anthony in a trade, but with the Nuggets currently sitting in a playoff spot, the decision on whether to trade their top scorer or keep him is a difficult one that the Nuggets organization must make. All Melo can do right now is continue to play hard. He did that last night and earned “The Stat Line of the Night” for Thursday, February 10, 2011 in the process.